Letters and sounds

What Are We Learning?

We are learning about 2D shapes and their properties.

How to Set up the Challenge

• Gather a selection of small sticks and pebbles. You could also use lolly sticks, pens, coins or buttons.

• Explore ways of arranging the items to create a 2D shape.

• Talk about the shapes you can create with your child.

• Talk about the shape names as well as some words to describe the shapes and what they look like. For example, sides, corners, straight and curved.

• Encourage your child to use these words to describe the shapes they make.

How to Get Your Child Thinking

• What shape can you make using the sticks?

• Can you make a triangle?

• How is my triangle similar to your triangle? How is it different?

• Can you make a shape with four corners? • How many sticks did you use?

• Does this shape have any corners? How many?

• Are there any shapes you can’t make using the sticks? Why not?

• What could we use to make a circle?

• Can you tell me how to make a rectangle? What do I need?

• What can you tell me about the shapes we made?

• How do you know this shape is a triangle?

• Could this shape be a circle? Why? Why not?

The toys you play with today are different to the toys you played with when you were a baby. 

Toys change as you get older and over time. 

Did you know that your mum and dad did not have a tablet to play with when they were 5. 

Did you know that your nan and grandad did not play computers games when they were 5.

Shocking, I know.

Find out what your mum and dad liked to play and what your nan and grandad liked to play. Together you can draw a picture of it.